


Yuletide Blessings

by NyxxTheWolf



Category: The Witcher (TV), Wiedźmin | The Witcher - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Fluff, Immortal Geralt, Immortal Jaskier | Dandelion, M/M, Paganism, Yule, holiday fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-13
Updated: 2020-11-17
Packaged: 2021-03-10 06:15:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,687
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27539746
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NyxxTheWolf/pseuds/NyxxTheWolf
Summary: Jaskier and Geralt have been together for a very long time. They've watched everything around them evolve into something newer and better. But despite that, they still choose to follow their hearts and their traditions.____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Or Jaskier and Geralt are immortals who still choose to celebrate the older Pagan holidays because that's what they know and what they've been celebrating for the last several centuries.
Relationships: Geralt z Rivii | Geralt of Rivia/Jaskier | Dandelion
Comments: 2
Kudos: 35





	1. Yuletide Morning

**Author's Note:**

> I want to give you all a heads up about this fic real quick. I describe Yule/Yuletide/Solstice in this fic the way I personally celebrate it. There is no right or wrong way to celebrate it, I’m just describing it how I celebrate because that’s what I’m most familiar with. 
> 
> As a Wiccan, Yule is one of my spiritual holidays rather than Christmas so there will be a lot of things in this fic that spawn from my personal Yule traditions. Feel free to ask me questions if you have them and I hope you enjoy! This was also supposed to be a one-shot but it got away from me so now it'll probably be 3, maybe 4 chapters long.
> 
> Also huge shoutout to @jaskierswolf because it was their Modern!AU Geraskier fic that inspired me to write this one!

“Geralt look! It’s snowing! And on Yule too!” Jaskier was bouncing excitedly in front of the small window of their living room, the curtains flung wildly to the sides. It was early, just past sunrise, but the promise of the days’ festivities had woken the young brunet at the first sign of daylight. His bright blue eyes had shown with excitement as he dragged his older and significantly less of a morning person husband out of bed.

“Yeah, Jask, I have eyes,” the white-haired witcher said with a smile, barely looking up from his phone, his very large cup of coffee on the end table next to him. “It’s almost like it’s winter. You’ve been alive for nearly a millennium, will you ever stop being shocked by the seasons? It snows every winter.”

The bard pouted, flopping backwards over the couch so that his head was hanging upside-down next to Geralt. “Just because I’m 976 years old does not mean I can’t get excited over snow. And you’re one to talk about age, you’re nearly 1100 years old. Honestly, I really shouldn’t be married to a man old enough to be my grandfather.” The bard smirked, leaning up to press a kiss to Geralt’s cheek. “It’s kinda weird.”

Geralt shook his head, putting his phone down on the coffee table. His husband was insufferable when he was excited about something and if Geralt didn’t give in to his excitement, the younger man would only become more annoying. “Hmm,” he hummed, his golden eyes taking in Jaskier’s face. They had been together for centuries, when being a Witcher meant more time travelling the country hunting monsters. Now it meant that he could spend more time doing things he enjoyed and if someone needed him they could just call his cell phone rather than him needing to search for work.

Jaskier had followed him willingly, singing his praises in shitty taverns and getting into far too many bar fights because someone said something crass to him. They had fallen in love slowly; Geralt had been terrified to fall for the bard, assuming he was as human as anyone else. The day he learned of Jaskier’s immortality he allowed his love to consume him and they were married at the nearest Temple of Melitele within the week.

Since then they had remained together, traveling the country and watching as the world evolved. Horses became less for travel and more for leisure, electricity and indoor plumbing became the norm, wars were fought and won, and they had been together through it all. Every few decades they’d move to a new city and get married again, finding someone willing to marry two immortals who still followed the older religious ways.

Most of the Temples that had been built to worship Melitele were long since lost to time, replaced by the dozens of other religions of the world. Geralt and Jaskier had kept to many of the traditions they grew up with, the names of their gods and goddesses shifting with the times. But they didn’t mind. They had their traditions and celebrations, and even if they were the only ones to celebrate them, they could celebrate together.

“Hello? Earth to Geralt!” Jaskier’s voice cut through Geralt’s trip down memory lane. The white-haired man smiled softly, gently tapping Jaskier’s nose with his index finger.

“Sorry, I was just thinking about how long we’ve been together and all that,” he said fondly, running his fingers through Jaskier’s hair, making the younger brunet blush a light shade of pink.

Jaskier rolled so he could sit on the couch properly, leaning his head against Geralt’s shoulder. “Tell me the story about Yule again, Geralt,” he said, giving his husband puppy-dog eyes.

Geralt chuckled. “Really? I tell you every year.”

“I know, but I like hearing it. And then after we can go shopping for our feast and get everything we need for tonight,” he said with a grin.  
“Alright, alright,” Geralt replied, repositioning them both so Jaskier was leaning back against his chest, their legs twining together. He took a sip of his coffee and smiled, closing his eyes as he began.

“Yule as we know and celebrate it now is younger than we are, but before it was celebrated as the Winter Solstice. It was a time for families to come together and thank Melitele for Her harvest and to ask for Her blessing for the upcoming year,” he said, letting his fingers trace aimless swirls along Jaskier’s arms.

“As time went on, some of the old traditions gave way to the ones we celebrate now. Families still come together to give thanks and to ask for blessings, but now there are other deities to pray to and other traditions that we follow. We make a feast to give thanks for the plentiful food we have access to, we burn a Yule log adorned with berries and fruits to cleanse our home and ourselves of negative thoughts and energies, and we decorate a tree with popcorn and berries and other snacks so that the animals we share the world with may have some extra food for the harsh winter ahead,” he continued.

“Yule falls on the shortest day of the year, and we believe that this is the point in which the Mother becomes the Crone, Her final from before she is reborn again at the Vernal Equinox as the Daughter. So, we thank Her for caring for us, nurturing us, feeding us and protecting us from Beltane through Samhain when she begins to become the Crone. It is a day to celebrate both the Mother and the Crone, two parts of a whole, and to remember that even during the darkest day of the year there is still much to be grateful for.” He kissed the top of Jaskier’s head, smiling.

“Things are different now than they were back then, but we can still celebrate together,” Jaskier replied. “I love celebrating Yule with you, Ger. You always cook the best feasts and you always make sure that our little altar is always clean and perfect.”

Geralt blushed slightly at the praise. “I do it because I love you and I love our traditions. I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

The two sat in silence for a few more moments before Jaskier rolled off of the couch, fluttering around their apartment like a rabbit on speed. “We need to get to the store before all the good food is sold out!”

Geralt chuckled, hauling himself off of the warm couch, picking up his coffee and chugging it down as quickly as possible before running his hand over his face. He watched his love rush around, trying to simultaneously get dressed to go to the grocery store and clean up the house. He shook his head. It was going to be a long day.


	2. Yuletide Shopping

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jaskier and Geralt need to go shopping. Cue Geralt acting like an exhausted parent while Jaskier runs around like a toddler hopped up on sugar.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's chapter 2! There is some mentioned hate discrimination against witchers in this chapter, as well as some mentioned Lambert and Eskel in this chapter too. 
> 
> Also, because I don't think I mentioned it in Chapter 1, this is Modern AU but still set on the Continent of 'The Witcher', which is why I mention canon-compliant cities and such. Also, Ciri doesn't exist in this AU because I'm just not comfortable writing children into fics.
> 
> This chapter is really just a fluffy filler chapter because I, like the Geralt of this fic, despise shopping. I hope you enjoy it!

Geralt hated exactly two things in the world. The first was when people would insult Jaskier’s music. The second was shopping during the holidays. He actually hated shopping in general, the stores were always full of people who would stare at him and it made his skin crawl. He was, after all, a rare breed.   
  
  
While people still relied on Witchers to do the dirty work of ridding the world of monsters, most of them had moved on to more reliable professions since monster hunting wasn’t exactly lucrative. His father figure, Vesemir, had died a few centuries prior but his brothers Lambert and Eskel were both still around; the other two Wolf witchers finding modern jobs to fill their free time and their bank accounts.   
  
  
Lambert worked in a steel mill in Skellige; his resistance to the extreme temperatures needed to temper the metal as well as his enhanced strength and stamina made him an excellent worker and the physicality of the job kept him out of trouble. Eskel had taken a job in a medical office in Oxenfurt, working with trauma and burn victims to cope with the scarring that they were left with. It was perfect for him, his own scars and gentle nature helped people open up to him, and patients that he saw were always happier after talking to him.  
  


Geralt hadn’t picked up a new profession since he worked as a riding instructor for a riding school in Lyria. He loved the job, being around the horses reminded him of his time travelling the Path with all of the various Roach’s he had. The kids weren’t bad, they respected him and most of them advanced quickly thanks to his patience. But the parents drove him away after a few years. He rarely allowed himself to meet any of the parents, most of them usually ended up disgusted when they discovered that their precious little babies were being left unsupervised with a Witcher. So he and Jaskier packed their things after barely half a decade and moved to Novigrad.  
  


The city was busy, especially during the holidays. It hadn’t escaped the cultural evolution that swept over the Continent, and all around him and Jaskier people were struggling under the weight of Christmas gifts and last-minute shopping for food. The cheerful carols that played from storefronts as they walked through the snow-dusted streets were drowned out by the cars and snow plows on the roads, and Geralt sighed as Jaskier stopped to look at another window display.  
  


“Jaskier, come on. I want to get to the store and get home,” Geralt grumbled, his breath swirling around his face in a fine mist.  
  


“Come on, Geralt, it’s the holidays!” Jaskier replied, looking at him with puppy eyes.  
  
  
“Yes, I’m aware of that. Which is why I would like to get to the store, get what we need, and get home. It’s barely nine in the morning and the stores are packed already. If we want to eat our feast before our prayers we need to get moving,” he grumbled, ignoring the way people moved to give him a wide berth.  
  


Jaskier huffed, turning and pressing himself close to Geralt, wrapping an arm around his husbands’ waist and heading for the large grocery store at the corner. He shivered at the sudden warmth as they entered the store, brushing snow from his shoulders. He smiled at Geralt, pressing a quick kiss to his cheek.  
  
  
Geralt smiled, pulling off his gloves and grabbing a shopping cart. “Alright, we need a beef roast, vegetables, some dried fruits, popcorn, sage, thyme, rosemary, oregano, lemons, lavender and some twine,” he said, listing off the things they’d need for their feast as well as their Yule rituals as they made their way to the produce section. They already had a Yule log at their house, they just needed all the appropriate herbs to burn with it.  
  


Jaskier nodded, following behind Geralt until he suddenly gasped and became sidetracked by a tray of red and green cupcakes. “Geralt, Geralt can we please get the cupcakes? Please?”  
  
  
Geralt sighed. “No, Jask. We came here for very specific things. We do not need Christmas cupcakes.” His golden eyes locked on to blue ones with a firmness that suggested that there was no room to argue.   
  
  
Jaskier pouted but put the cupcakes back, following Geralt once more. He relaxed as they began gathering the ingredients on their list, getting excited for their Yule feast. He quickly became distracted again by a large display of inflatable decorations, begging Geralt to get one.  
  


“No. We don’t even celebrate Christmas,” the Witcher growled, causing several people nearby to scurry away from him. He sighed and rubbed a hand over his face, taking a deep breath. “We’re almost done. If you behave yourself I will let you get the cupcakes and I’ll buy you a hot chocolate.”  
  
  
Jaskier’s eyes lit up and he shoved his hands in his pockets. “I’ll behave,” he said, pressing close to Geralt with a smile as they moved on to finish their shopping.  
  


True to his word, Geralt bought Jaskier the tray of cupcakes and a large cup of hot chocolate as they were leaving. The younger bard was grinning from ear to ear and the sight alone brought a smile to Geralt’s face.  
  
  
The walk home took longer than the walk to the store, both the men slowed by the weight of the food they had purchased. Jaskier was extra slow, trying to balance carrying his bags of food and his hot chocolate. Geralt kept his pace slow, not wanting to rush his husband, even though the snow was staring to fall harder.

  
“Come on, we’re almost home,” Geralt said, turning the corner onto their street. He could see their house father down, his eyes picking out their barely-decorated yard amongst the bright lights and decorations o their neighbors. He was pulled from his thoughts by a thud, and he tuned to see Jaskier on his ass in a snowdrift. He laughed at the sight, Jaskier’s hair had flopped into his eyes and his groceries had spilled from their bags.

  
“It’s not funny!” the brunet shouted, standing shakily before brushing the snow from his pants. “You didn’t tell me it was slippery.”

  
“I’m sorry love,” Geralt said, bending to pick up the stray food. “I honestly didn’t realize how slick it was right there.” He pressed a gentle kiss to the bards’ forehead. “I’ll take the groceries, you go ahead and get the door open for me, little lark.”

  
Jaskier nodded, carefully taking each step as they approached their front door. Jaskier fumbled with his keys for a moment before unlocking the door, the warmth of their home washing over the two of them. Geralt squeezed himself past Jaskier, who had stopped right in front of the door to strip his outerwear off, to begin putting the food away. He worked alone, making sure everything was in it’s place while Jaskier got their wet clothes into the laundry.

  
He sighed as he finally got everything unpacked and set aside, leaving Jaskier’s cupcakes on the counter. He slumped onto the couch, leaning his head back and closing his eyes. Shopping with Jaskier was always a chore, the younger man always getting distracted. Geralt loved him more than anything but he now knew what it was like to have a toddler. He was roused from his thoughts by a cup being pushed into his hands and soft lips on his forehead. He opened his eyes to see Jaskier, dressed in one of Geralt’s hoodies, handing him a hot cup of tea.   
  
  
“I figured you’d want something warm after walking in the snow,” he said, curling up on the couch next him.

  
Geralt smiled. “Thank you, Jask, I needed this.”

  
Jaskier beamed under the praise, pressing himself closer to Geralt. “I’m glad. Sorry for taking so long at the store, I know you hate shopping and crowds, and I know you notice how people still stare at you.”  
  
  
Geralt shrugged, taking a sip of the tea. It was his favorite herbal blend, and Jaskier had added just a small bit of sugar to it. “People always stare at me, they have for the last thousand-plus years. Witchers aren’t meant to coexist with normal people, and everything about us stands out. Me especially,” he muttered into Jaskier’s hair. He knew he was a freak amongst freaks, his long snow-white hair and deep amber eyes made him stand out even around other Witchers. He felt Jaskier clutch him tighter.

  
“Don’t say that about yourself,” he said softly. “You’re so amazing. Perfect. Wonderful. Selfless. I love you exactly as you are,” he said, kissing along his neck with each word.

  
Geralt smiled, lifting his head to kiss his lips. “I love you too, my sweet little lark.” He smiled, leaning back against the couch. “Let’s get warm and then we’ll get our feast cooking okay?”

  
Jaskier grinned, twining their fingers together. “I’d like that,” he replied, closing his eyes against Geralt’s chest.

  
Geralt relaxed, the even cadence of Jaskier’s breathing putting him in a meditative trance. In a few hours, their house would be full of food and love and he couldn’t wait.  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Thanks so much for reading!


End file.
